(I started to reply to a sub-comment, but realized this had broader applicability)

I used to be really cynical about this whole dynamic -- I mean, I still am to some degree -- but I've started to accept/understand it.

It has ALWAYS been the case that random dudes will constantly be doling out compliments to pretty women. The Internet has made it a lot easier, for sure, but the fundamental behavior is at least as old as language.

I don't think anybody involved really has any expectations (but obviously the dudes would be thrilled if the women responded in a receptive way). After all, the guys are doing the same thing to dozens of different women. And the women are aware of this, but are still flattered nonetheless! When I learned that I was astounded, because I thought women only wanted TRULY personalized attention. But that's not how it works.

It's more like, the shower of attention they receive every day, is a pleasing background noise, or an overall validation. They would be far more bothered if it stopped all of a sudden, than to be fully aware how they're just one target out of ten for a particular guy that day. (I mean stop to think about how women feel about TRULY personalized attention from unknown males -- they're, uh, not wild about it. Hence the term "creeper")

So it's like this weird social dance / ritual where a woman stands in the center, and all the hopeful suitors form around her in a circle. Everybody throws their hat in the ring, being clever, funny, whatever. To most she just says "aww, thanks!" (or presses "like" -- indispensable feature, that), but occasionally she'll offer up something a little more personal and inviting. Effectively saying "okay, what else ya got?" And then if the guy makes good use of that opportunity, then he's granted a little more proximity. Eventually somebody makes it out of the probationary outer ring, and ... well, picture one sperm finally making it into the egg. A remarkable parallel, if you think about it.

Anyhow. It's just the online form of the long-standing human mating ritual. It can seem repulsive if you're looking at it from a naive, fairy-tale sort of perspective (which I certainly did, for most of my life). But if you try to see more of the evolutionary animal logic in the whole thing, it starts to make some sense.

It's kind of like how everybody gets pissed off when a car cuts into the front of a line of backed up traffic, instead of going to the end and waiting their turn like everybody else. That SEEMS fair, but from a traffic engineer's perspective, is actually less efficient (because of the gaps/delays between one car moving and the car behind it noticing -- like the loose coupling between train cars, it takes forever for the vehicles in the rear to actually start moving). Likewise, to a casual observer it seems moronic that all these losers are boosting some *attention-whore's ego ... and for some of those individuals, yes, it's futile. But in AGGREGATE, it's sensible behavior and very efficient.

tl;dr -- Stop complaining and start participating. Your preconceptions are backing up cock-traffic.